Conventionally, a manual device to create combustion of tinder utilizes high pressure to heat air to temperature of combustion with respect to the tinder. An example of a conventional combustion device is illustrated in FIG. 1.
As illustrated in FIG. 1, a conventional combustion device 1 includes a housing 16 (typically, a cylinder; however, other shapes can be used) having a chamber 15, an open end 161, and a closed end 162. A piston 12, having a handle 11, engages the housing 16.
The piston 12 also includes a pneumatic piston sealing device 13 (typically, an o-ring or wrapped string) that engages the side walls of the chamber 15 to prevent air from passing out of the chamber 15 as the piston 12 is pressed into the chamber 15. The piston 12 further includes tinder 14, which is to be combusted by the increased pressure in the chamber 15 caused by the piston 12 being pressed into the chamber 15.
It is noted that it is possible to achieve combustion, without a pneumatic piston sealing device, if tolerances are very small and the chamber/piston surfaces are smooth.
It is noted that the piston 12 may include a device to hold the tinder in place. It is further noted that the location of the pneumatic piston sealing device 13 on the piston is such that when the tinder 14 becomes located substantially next to the closed end 162, as illustrated in FIG. 2, the pressure within the chamber 15 is such that the tinder 14 combusts.
As illustrated in FIG. 2, to achieve combustion of the tinder 14, a force 17 is applied to the handle 11 to drive the piston 12 into the chamber 15 towards the closed end 162. Due to the pneumatic seal from the pneumatic piston sealing device 13, the pressure, within the chamber 15, increases such that tinder 14 eventually combusts. The piston 12 is then withdrawn to apply the combusted tinder 14 to kindling to start a fire.
After the tinder 14 has been combusted and applied to the kindling, it is desirable to store the piston 12 within the chamber 15 of housing 16. However, as illustrated if FIG. 3, a conventional combustion device 1 prevents the piston 12 from being stored within the chamber 15 of housing 16 because the pneumatic piston sealing device 13 prevents the release of air from the chamber 15. This causes the piston 12 to be partially stored within the chamber 15 of housing 16, as illustrated in FIG. 3.
As set forth above, the conventional combustion device can provide the ignition of tinder, however, the conventional combustion device hinders the piston 12 from being substantially stored within the chamber 15 of housing 16 because as previously discussed, operability requires a pneumatic seal, thereby preventing the assembling of the piston 12 and housing 16 together as a single unit, when not in use, and carried in a “closed” position (the piston 12 from being substantially stored within the chamber 15 of housing 16).
The partial storage of the piston 12 within the chamber 15 of housing 16 allows the piston 12 and the chamber 15 to be exposed to contamination and damage.
One conventional solution to this storage issue is to provide a special pouch, along with the conventional combustion device, to store the separate pieces within and to keep the piston 12 and the chamber 15 clean and free of damage. However, this conventional solution requires additional space and logistics for managing a pouch.
Another conventional solution to this storage issue, although counterproductive, is to breach the pneumatic seal formed by an o-ring with a string to encourage leakage when the piston is being placed within the chamber for storage. This requires the user to lift the o-ring from the piston and insert a string therebetween for storage and then remove the string from between the o-ring and piston when using the device for combustion. Thus, a user must continually disengage and re-engage the pneumatic seal from the piston, thereby weakening the seal increasing the failure rate for combustion.
A third conventional solution to this storage issue utilizes different size o-ring seals, whereby one has a cross sectional dimension to allow leakage of air and the other o-ring has a cross sectional dimension to enable combustion. In this solution, the o-ring having a cross sectional dimension to allow leakage of air is installed around the piston when the user desires to store the combustion device. This o-ring allows air to leak between the o-ring and side of the chamber so as to release the pressure therefrom. If the user desires combustion, the user must install the o-ring having a cross sectional dimension to enable combustion. This second o-ring pneumatically seals the chamber to enable combustion. In this third solution, a user must also continually disengage and re-engage the pneumatic seal from the piston, thereby weakening the seal increasing the failure rate for combustion.
Moreover, while the second and third solutions attempt to allow the piston to be fully inserted for storage, these solutions may also limit the maximum attainable pressure and thereby reduce the efficiency of the combustion device.
Therefore, it is desirable to provide a combustion device that facilitates storage of the piston and housing of a combustion device as a single unit.